Category / Local

Of course you love the idea of joining a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) who wouldn’t? Fresh, local produce straight from the farmer conveniently delivered twice a month and also probably cheaper than picking it up at the farmer’s market every week. The problem is, last time you tried it you ended up with clumps of soggy Swiss chard and moldy tomatillos in the back of your fridge because you simply couldn’t get through everything before it spoiled. It was a waste of money and a waste of good food!

You’d like to think that you’ll do a better job this time around of cooking your way through that perpetual box of greens but the reality is there’s always going to be times where, for whatever reason, you just can’t. Fortunately, this is exactly what Ripelist was built for.

Those who are familiar with Ripelist know it works great for sharing surplus from the garden or homemade Kombucha with neighbors but it’s also a perfect solution for the CSA blues. Too much Kale? Post it on Ripelist for sale or trade. Is that bulk meat order from your local ranch a little too much for your freezer? Put it on Ripelist and see what your neighbors have to trade! It’s not only a solution to food waste but if you offer your extra for sale or trade, it will actually save you money and help you connect with like-minded neighbors to boot!

If you are considering signing up again this year for a CSA, don’t hesitate. It’s still the best way to get fresh food while supporting your local farm. Just make sure you’ve downloaded Ripelist if you do. It just may be the answer to your CSA blues.

Cody visited the doctor frequently growing up in Dallas, Texas. She remembers always feeling “crummy” but no one ever being able to tell her why. She says, “although it was hard, I just sort of accepted that’s how It was always going to be. I normalized it.” Cody and her siblings were raised on mostly processed and fast food but explains, “It was standard. It was what we knew. Continue reading →

Just as “all natural”, and “farm fresh” emblazoned on egg cartons and juice boxes have come to mean very little to the marketing savvy, ‘Farm to Table’, a phrase long used by restaurants advertising local ingredients, seems destined to join their hollow ranks. Continue reading →

I pull up just as Joel Kelly is unloading a few leftover plants from an old Chevy van. Every week Joel delivers approximately 500 live basil plants from his small urban farm to New Seasons stores around Portland and has recently secured distribution to a number of other stores in the area. Continue reading →

In the last five years or so, there has been a relatively quiet movement taking place in the halls of U.S. state governments. A small but growing minority are being granted special exceptions to long-established laws. This group, in all their spicy, smoked, pickled, baked and otherwise flavor-bursting varieties, are cottage food operations (CFOs), or put more simply, homemade food businesses.Continue reading →

A few weeks ago, in a miserable fit of sneezing and itchy red eyes, I came across a homespun remedy for seasonal allergies I hadn’t heard of before; Stinging Nettle tea. That’s right. It’s that annoying weed your dad warned you about on camping trips in the woods. After some more, ahem… rigorous research (there’s a lot of mommy blogs out there) I decided to give it a shot.Continue reading →